In settings where hospital cleaning services are assigned to private sector contractors, the use of new no-touch technologies could be considered in outsourcing contracts as an improvement action in the event of non-compliance in the cleaning service. The dedicated personnel should be adequately trained not only on the cleaning protocols to be adopted but also on infection control issues, underlining the key role of cleaning procedures.

These organisms belong to a group of carbapenem-resistant, gram-negative bacteria of national and international concern because of their implication as an emerging cause of severe healthcare-associated infections. In , the World Health Organization published the first global guidelines for the prevention and control of CRE-CRAB-CRPsA in healthcare facilities, which include environmental cleaning and disinfection as a key recommendation.

A prospective open-labelled cross-over study was conducted in a -bed teaching hospital in Italy from April to June . To evaluate the effectiveness of the UV-C disinfection robot in reducing environmental contamination, sampling was performed in four different critical areas: single occupancy ward room, intensive care unit (ICU) isolation room occupied for a minimum of h, and operating theaters (OTs).

In that regard, the World Health Organization has reiterated the importance of using this type of disinfection after the adoption of the standard protocol for sanitizing hospital rooms, but, during the COVID- pandemic, the use of UVC radiation was also proposed immediately after the patient has been discharged in order to reduce the risk of the cleaning staff being infected, who can then safely apply the standard protocol [

Among the appliable strategies for the improvement of cleaning and disinfection practices are the use of new materials and/or disinfectants, the training and audit of operators, and the use of new automated technologies, which are becoming increasingly important. In particular, no-touch disinfection technologies have the great advantage of not being dependent on the operator, ensuring process repeatability. Furthermore, their effectiveness has been demonstrated even on sites that are difficult to reach with manual intervention. Their use complements but does not replace ordinary cleaning and disinfection protocols. In the past few years, ultraviolet disinfection systems have been widely investigated and used as a way to improve standard cleaning protocols. Currently, ultraviolet devices are automated in order to guarantee process repeatability and reduce human errors. The application of UV devices as an addition to traditional environmental cleaning has become increasingly common due to their effectiveness in reducing the environmental microbial burden in a shorter time compared to other technologies using chemical products [